The present invention relates to an eaves trough or gutter assembly and more particularly, relates to improvements to such structures.
The use of shields or gutters or eaves troughs is well known in the prior art and there have been many proposals for different types of shields. The purpose of the shield is essentially to permit passage of rainwater from the roof to the eaves trough while protecting the same from extraneous foreign matter such as leaves and the like.
To-date, there have been several different approaches taken. A first approach is utilizing a shield or a guard which is apertured and permits the passage of rainwater while extensively barring the passage of extraneous material. Moreover, many of these guards do not function as desired and access must still be had to the eaves trough for cleaning purposes.
It has also been proposed in the art to provide relatively complex structures wherein eaves troughs are mounted for rotatable movement such that they may be emptied at desired intervals.
There have also been proposals in the art for gutters and eaves troughs which have a design wherein a cover has an outer edge which curls downwardly and the water flow follows a curved portion due to surface tension and thereafter cascades into the eaves trough. However, this concept suffers that when the volume of water becomes sufficiently large, the surface tension is insufficient to cause all the water to flow into the gutter.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel gutter guard which is adapted to be used with existing gutters and which will eliminate the use of conventional attachment procedures for securing the gutter to the eaves of the structure.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a novel eaves trough having an integrated gutter guard and which eliminates the need for conventional attachment of the gutter using long nails and the like.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a device for protecting a gutter wherein the gutter has a rear wall, a front wall, and a bottom wall, the walls defining a trough having an open top therebetween, the gutter also having a top wall portion extending inwardly from an upper marginal edge of the front wall, and a downwardly extending flange from a distal end of the top wall, the front wall, the top wall and the flange defining a recess therebetween, the device comprising a guard member having an elongated configuration with a generally planar central portion, first and second longitudinally extending opposed sides located on either side of the generally planar central portion, a plurality of apertures extending through the generally planar central portion, the first side of the guard member having an upwardly extending portion designed to fit within the recess, and the second side of the guard member having an inverted U-shaped portion designed to fit over an upper marginal edge of the rear wall of the gutter.
According to a further aspect of the invention, there is provided an eaves trough formed from a single piece of material, the eaves trough comprising a rear wall, a front wall, and a bottom wall, the walls defining a trough therebetween, a top wall extending inwardly from a distal end of the front wall, a downwardly extending inner wall portion extending from a distal end of the top wall, and a substantially planar horizontal portion covering the trough, a distal end of the substantially horizontal portion having an inverted U-shaped configuration sized and arranged to fit over an upper marginal portion of the rear wall.
According to a further aspect of the invention, there is provided, in a building having a gutter for collecting water, the improvement wherein the gutter has a rear wall, a front wall, and a bottom wall, the walls defining an open trough therebetween, the gutter also having a top wall portion extending inwardly from an upper marginal edge of the front wall, and a downwardly extending flange from a distal end of the top wall, the front wall, the top wall and the flange defining a recess therebetween, a guard member having an elongated configuration with a generally planar central portion, first and second longitudinally extending opposed sides located on either side of the generally planar central portion, a plurality of apertures extending through the generally planar central portion, the first side of the guide member having an upwardly extending portion designed to fit within the recess, the second side of the guide member having an inverted U-shaped configuration fitting over an upper marginal edge of the rear wall of the gutter, and the gutter being attached by a fastening means extending through the inverted U-shaped portion and the rear wall of the gutter to the building structure.
The device of the present invention may be formed of any suitable material and would conveniently be formed either of a metallic or plastic material. Thus, both materials are known for use in gutters and one may use either a similar or dissimilar material.
The device of the present invention provides a guard for the eaves trough to prevent foreign matter from entering into the eaves trough. It is important that appropriate sizing of the apertures formed in the planar protection is provided. Thus, the aperture size and their placement permit adequate drainage of the water through the apertures into the eaves trough while substantially excluding any foreign matter which remains on the top and would normally be removed by the wind or the like. The specific sizing of the apertures can also prevent clogging of the device.
The apertures preferably extend in diagonal rows at an angle of 45xc2x0 with respect to the gutter length. In the preferred embodiments, the apertures have an aperture size of between 2.5 and 10 mm and even more preferably between about 3.0 and 4.0 mm. As the apertures are arranged in diagonal rows, they are also preferably arranged in longitudinally extending rows. In a longitudinally extending row, the apertures are spaced apart by a distance between 10 and 15 mm while in a diagonal row, they are spaced apart by a distance of between 5 and 10 mm.
As will be appreciated, during a period of heavy rain or the like, the drainage may not be instantaneous and accordingly, there is provided a vertically extending adjacent front wall gutter to prevent overflow.